Cotton-picking apparatus.



-T. J. GESSMAN.

COTTON PIUKING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 27, 1900.

Patented Apr. 27, 1909.

. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

w: m Theodor IT. Gessman- T. J. GBSSMAN. COTTON PIGKING APPARATUS. APPLIOATI'ON FILED MAB. 27,1900.

Patented Apr. 27, 1909.

lwvnfoz Theodor ILGessmom 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

, THEQDOR J. GESSMAN, or wAnwicn'oxL nonA.

OOTTQN-PIGKING APPARATUS.

No. e19,s47.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 27, 1909.

s nesfionmea March e7, 1908. Serial No. 42min.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, Tnnonon J: GEssMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Warwick, in the county of Lincoln, State of Oklahoma, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cotton-Picking Aparatus; and I do hereby declare the fol-- owing to be a full, clear, and exact descrip tion of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use'the same. I

The present invention has reference to cotton-pickers, and it aims, primarily, to provide an exceedingly simple and eilective suc- 15 tion-operated apparatus of that nature which a may be readily mounted upon the bed of a farm'wagon of any conventional type without necessitating any alteration either in the wagon or in the apparatus itself, and which 2ov may be removed with equal facility from the wagon at the conclusion of the picking operation.

To this end, the invention comprises a covered receptacle having its rear wall rovided with a horizontal slot through w ich the discharge neck of the casing of a fan extends, the casing being'secured directly to said wall adjacent the motor which drives the fan, the suction tubes being fitted at their up er ends upon nipples formed upon a second neck located toward the bottom ofthe casing. l

The invention further resides inthe provision upon the hinged lid or cover of the receptacle of a pair of exhaust pipes whose lower ends communicate with the interior of the receptacle through openings formed in said lid, while their upper ends-have deflectors" secured thereto, which permit the escape of-airthrough the pipes, and, (a tl the same time, prevent that of the icked cotton.

The invention will be readily understood from a consideration of the following detailed description, and its preferred embodiment is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which corresponding-parts or features, as

the case may be, are designated by similar reference numerals in the several views.

Of thesaid drawin s: Figure 1 is a rear elevation of the compfiateinvention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view. Fig.4 is a top plan .Wiew, part of the cover being broken away" jfbr clearness, of illustration. 5 5 \A portion of the wagon bed is shown in dotted lines in Figs. 1 and 2.

- that vice of any or inary type. To the rear Wall J v of the receptacle is secured the casing 10 of a fan 11, the fan shaft 12 being driven by a motor 13 mounted upon a bracket 14 which pro ects laterally from said front wall and is riveted thereto.

The up er ortion of the fan casing is provided wit 1 a -shaped neck 15 dis osed longitudinally thereof, the horizonta arm of said neck projecting through a horizontal slot 16 formed'in the rear wall 9 and extending into the interior of the receptacle. The lower portion of the fan casing is, in like manner, rovided with a longitudinal neck 17 upon w rich a series of downwardly inclined ni les 18 is formed, each nipple having fitted thereon the upper end of a suction pipe 19 whose lower end carries a cup 20. The suction pipes, which are preferably formed of rubber or similar flexible material are maintained in distended position by means of helical springs 21 fitted in the interior thereof. The fan casing has disposed within its interior a screen 35' ofwire gauze or other suitable material, the screen being so arranged as to prevent the cotton drawn into the casing by the. action of the fan from .coming into-contact with the fan blades.

The rece tacle cover 7, above referred to, has formerftherethrough adjacent its front and rear ends a pair of openings 22, in which the lower ends of the front and rear vertical exhaust pipes 23 are fitted, said pipes being held in such position by circumscribing fianges24 which are formed thereon and are riveted to the cover. Each exhaust pipe carries at its upper end a'conical ribbed deflector 25.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent When the fan is in operation and the on s 20 are held against the open cotton :bo s, the suction caused by the rotation of the fan will remove the cotton fromthe bolls and force it through the discharge neck- 17 into the interior of the receptacle, the air exhausting through the spaces between the edges of the deflector 25 and the corresponding pip s R, which spaces, however, are sufficiently small to prevent the cotton from escaping therethrough.

T e side wall8 of the receptacle to which the cover is hinged has pivotally connected thereto the lower end of a lever 26, the upper end of the lever carrying a pulley 27 rotatably mounted in a bracket 28 secured to said end. The lever is normally maintained in an inclined position by the engagement therewith of a clip' 29 which is likewise secured to the wall 8, a spring ressed clip 30 being secured to the u per e ge of said wall directly above the point at which the lever i pivoted. The side edge of the cover to which the locking device, above referred to,

is secured, is provided with an eye bolt 32 to which one end of a cable 33 'is fastened, said cable being lead around the'pulley 27. By reason of this construction, it will be apparent that upon the ap lication of stress to the free end of the ca 1e after the lever 26 has been moved into vertical osition, in engagement with the clip 30, tie cover 7 will be raised into 0 en position.

While the weight of the receptacle is'ordinarily suflicient to maintain it against displacement during the movement of the wagon, said receptacle may, if preferred, be

further secured to the wagon bed by means of metal braces 34 which depend from the .casing of the fan and are formed integral therewith, the lower ends of said braces being bolted-to the wagon bed. The bolts, however, are adapted to be withdrawn from engagement with the wagon bed, to permit the removal of the receptacle, when desired.

It will be obvious, therefore, from the foregoing, that the apparatus as a whole, is extremely simple in its construction, may be manufactured at a correspondingly low ,cost, and may be mounted upon the bed of a farm wagon of any ordinary t e without necessitating any alteration eit er in the bed or in the apparatus itself.

What is claimed is:

v The combination, in a cotton-picking apparatus, of a receptacle and a cover therefor, the receptacle having a horizontal slot formed in its rear wall, and the cover having, an opening formed therethrough; an exteriorly-located fan casing secured to said wall and rovidedwith a horizontal discharge necii extending through said slot and opening into the interior of the receptacle, and with a second neck having a series of nipples formed thereon; a fan disposed wit in said casing; a motor secured to said rear wall and arranged to rotate said fan; a suction pipe secured to each nip 1e; an exhaust pipe having itslower end itted in the opening in said cover; and a conical deflector secured to the upper end of said exhaust pipe, to permit the esca )e of air and prevent the escape of the picke cotton from the interior of the receptacle.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

THEODOR J. GESSMAN.

Witnesses R. E. PRINE, JAS. H. KENNEY. 

